Texas Basketball: Best- and Worst-Case Scenarios for Rest of Longhorns' Season

After plenty of promise heading into the season, the Texas Longhorns are on the bubble as the final week of regular-season action in the Big 12 approaches.

In a wild Big 12, the Longhorns have gone 1-7 against ranked opponents and are in the middle of a three-game losing streak.

On top of that, Texas has not received the best performances from its star players during the stretch run of the season.

Below is a look at some of the best- and worst-case scenarios for the rest of the Longhorns' season.

Best-Case Scenarios

Longhorns Win Out and Earn an Automatic NCAA Tournament Berth

The perfect scenario for the Longhorns over the next three weeks would see the team win its final six games before the NCAA tournament.

To do that, the Longhorns need to go into Allen Fieldhouse on Saturday and defeat Kansas before home games against Baylor and Kansas State.

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At the Big 12 tournament, head coach Rick Barnes' team will have to defeat at least two ranked teams at the Sprint Center in Kansas City, Missouri.

While this may seem like an unrealistic scenario, it could still happen if Texas finds a way to pull everything together at once.

Javan Felix Gets His Act Together

Since returning from a concussion on February 11, guard Javan Felix has scored 34 points in 89 minutes, including his failure to score in two minutes against West Virginia.

Felix had been relied on as one of the top scorers on the team before his injury, but he has failed to make the same impact in the last five games.

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If the Longhorns want any chance of pulling off a few upsets and securing a NCAA tournament berth, Felix must drastically improve his numbers.

However, the odds are not in Felix's favor, as he scored a combined six points in 54 minutes against Kansas and Baylor earlier this season. He missed the clash with Kansas State on February 7 due to his concussion.

Jonathan Holmes Uses His Ejection as Positive Motivation

Things went from bad to worse in the loss to West Virginia when forward Jonathan Holmes was ejected for throwing an elbow.

Holmes did make amends for his lapse in judgment after the game by apologizing in the Mountaineers' locker room, per Mitch Vingle of the Charleston Gazette:

Now that he has put the ugly moment behind him, Holmes needs to channel his emotions in a positive manner against the Jayhawks, Bears and Wildcats.

Not only does Holmes need a few good showings to end the season to put the incident squarely in the past, he needs to show up in order to silence a growing amount of critics.

The last time the senior scored in double digits was in the January 31 loss to Baylor.

Worst-Case Scenarios

Texas Loses Out and Fails to Make the Field of 68

Based on their recent outings, the Longhorns are destined to crash and burn against Kansas and Baylor as well as in the Big 12 tournament.

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In the absolute worst-case scenario, Texas would end the regular season with a 6-12 conference record and a first-round loss in Kansas City.

Four more losses to end the season would leave the Longhorns at 17-15 overall, which is far from a desirable record for an at-large team from a power conference.

The potential downward spiral would also hand Texas a 2-10 record in games against teams from the Top 25.

The Players Give Up and Get Blown Out

There is also a strong possibility that Texas will crash out of the postseason conversation in dubious fashion.

Taking into account some of the awful individual performances turned in by the Longhorns recently, it would not come as a surprise if the players give up on the season.

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The Longhorns were expected to be a contender for the Big 12 regular-season title, but things have not gone in their favor at all.

By having failed to live up to their preseason title of contenders, the Longhorns may mail it in and lose all hope of making the field of 68.

All statistics obtained from ESPN.com.

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